In 2025, fire departments serving Alexis responded to 19 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $200K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 79% of all calls.
May peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
84 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $582K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 16 | — | |
| 2022 | 14 | -12.5% | |
| 2023 | 20 | +42.9% | |
| 2024 | 15 | -25.0% | |
| 2025 | 19 | +26.7% |
For the 3 building fires Alexis departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 28 building fires investigators classified across 2021–2025. The room or location where ignition occurred — kitchens, bedrooms, exterior, vehicle areas — tells you where to focus prevention.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 7 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 17.9% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 5 | 17.9% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 3 | 10.7% | |
| 5 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Vacant structural area | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 1 | 3.6% |
NFIRS Heat Source (HEAT_SOURC) — the physical thing that started it. Spark or ember from operating equipment, an open flame, smoking materials, or hot embers from a fireplace are the leading culprits nationwide. Here's the Alexis mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 35.7% | |
| 2 | Match | 7 | 25.0% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 14.3% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 2 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Lightning | 1 | 3.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Alexis departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $2,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Alexis sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 8,473 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 1,500 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,200 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 832 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 820 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 640 | 41.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Arson/incendiarism | 630 | 31.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 333 | 28.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 282 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 232 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 200 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 195 | 39.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 180 | 35.4 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Alexis. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.
Numbers reflect incidents reported by participating fire departments to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) Public Data Release for calendar year 2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Per-capita comparisons use 2023 ACS population estimates. Wildland fire data complements NFIRS with NIFC and USFS perimeters. Active-fire counts come from a dated NIFC snapshot, not a live feed.